Cascades grizzly bear in the news

A free, public presentation set for Thursday, Jan. 22 in Ellensburg will attempt to answer whether there is a noticeable population of grizzly bears in the North Cascades and if the area is wild enough to support more of the reclusive, big bears.

"Grizzly bears are deeply embedded in the fabric of B.C. and the culture of First Nations people who have lived here for thousands of years. Surely we can afford the small investment that it would take to protect and recover these magnificent animals so that they remain deeply embedded for our grandchildren.: -Kyle Empringham, Community Engagement Organizer, Coast to Cascades Grizzly Bear Initiative

Joining in the quest to catch the poachers is the Coast to Cascades Grizzly Bear Initiative. Two members of the initiative - the Pemberton Wildlife Association and Conservation Northwest - have each put up $1,000 as a reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons who killed Jewel.

Jewel and Jinx are two of a handful of females in a cohort of grizzly bears in southwest BC that is disappearing, victims of low numbers, genetic isolation, and too many preventable deaths; all a function of habitat fragmentation.

Conservation Northwest has launched a collaborative effort to stem the ongoing loss of grizzly bear range and to promote grizzly bear recovery in the transboundary ecosystems of southwest British Columbia and northwest Washington.

“Grizzly bears are extremely rare in southern B.C., particularly in the Cascades,” said Scott Denkers of Hope Mountain Centre. “We are asking the public to report sightings, because every individual grizzly is important to these populations.”

Jul 25 - This summer, call in your grizzly bear sightings to 1-855-GO GRIZZ! BC biologists and US counterparts hope to invest citizens in a similar vein through citizen science and monitoring. Hotline reports are screened by trained volunteers and forwarded on to BC biologists, who will follow up with field verification.

“Every verified sighting contributes to our knowledge about SW BC’s grizzly bears which in turn helps us understand how vulnerable they are to local extinction,” said Joe Scott, Conservation Northwest. “Hikers, climbers, hunters, fishers, photographers, loggers and ranchers – anyone who is recreating or working in the mountains can potentially contribute. The more solid information biologists have about grizzly bear abundance and distribution the better their ability to monitor bear recovery.”

The powerful predators are so rare in Washington - best estimates are fewer than 20 bears - that for years belief in the Cascade grizzly's existence has required a childlike acceptance similar to that reserved by youngsters for Santa Claus.

Biologists have been stalking grizzlies in the Cascades for years... A recently verified photograph has reinvigorated the research team, but the fight for funding to protect the white whale of the Cascades goes on.

"The Cascades grizzly bear has always been the red-headed stepchild of the grizzly bear recovery program," says Joe Scott of Conservation Northwest, the leading local advocacy group for grizzly recovery. "It generally gets the hand-me-downs, leftovers and pocket change."

The list includes the gray wolf and the gray whale. One is a controversial predator that is repopulating the Cascades and the Selkirk Mountains of northeast Washington. Last year... a grizzly was photographed on a ridge in the North Cascades National Park.

Editorial by the NYT: It is now clear that biological diversity increases when top predators are present. The pyramid is healthiest when its peak is still present and when humans aren’t the only top predators around.

“Grizzly bears are considered an umbrella species, since they are wilderness-loving animals with large home ranges and need lots of roadless wild areas to thrive. A number of other animals as well need those kinds of security,” Joe Scott of Conservation Northwest said.

This is the first report vertified by photographic evidence of a grizzly bear in the North Cascades ecosystem since 1996, according to Joe Scott, a conservation director for Conservation Northwest in Bellingham.

"We've talked about this for 20 years, and over time the sightings have gotten fewer and fewer to the point where I worried the bears had blinked out altogether on our watch," Mitch Friedman of Conservation Northwest said. "So I'm incredibly relieved. But this is a clarion call on the federal government to fulfill its obligation to recover the species." [Article appeared front page, July 2, Seattle Times]

“We welcome this confirmation that grizzly bears still roam the North Cascades,” said Joe Scott, Conservation Northwest’s director of international conservation. “But it doesn’t change the fact that their foothold in these mountains is as tenuous as that of a climber on crumbling rock.... It will not recover without pro-active strategies to boost the population....”

"The federal agencies 20 years ago determined that the habitat was exceptional and could support a stable population of bears," said Mitch Friedman, with Conservation Northwest. "But as the years passed without photos, I came to wonder if North Cascades grizzlies were like vampires and wouldn't show up in photos. I'm relieved to know the bears are there."